Crescendo Mixed Choir
Choir presentation
The Crescendo Mixed Choir, part of the Crescendo Musical Society, was founded in early 2015. It was established at the initiative of its current conductor, Žiga Ke, and now has more than 40 young singers who share the common goal of performing high-quality choral music.
Their repertoire consists of choral music by Slovenian and international composers, as well as popular music arranged for choirs. They focus primarily on a high-level choral programme, which they perform at choral competitions and festivals in Slovenia and abroad.
One of their most important projects was performing at a special concert for their choir conductor, Žiga Kert, in May 2016. The choir presented a very dynamic repertoire, featuring Slovenian pieces as well as international choral music, ranging from Slovenian folk songs and African-American spirituals to contemporary choral music by various American and European composers.
The Crescendo Choir has set itself the goal of performing challenging choral repertoire and taking part in various choral events both in Slovenia and abroad. The first major independent musical project of the Crescendo Musical Society was the concert at Škofja Loka Castle in June 2017.
THE CHOIR DIRECTOR: Žiga Kert
Žiga Kert studied music education at the Academy of Music in Ljubljana, where he completed his studies under Prof. Marko Vatovec. He studied orchestral conducting at the State Conservatory of Carinthia in Klagenfurt, Austria, under Prof. Aleksej Kornienko, and later under the mentorship of Prof. Martin A. Fuchsberger. He also studied classical singing under mag. prof. Francka Senk. Žiga began playing the piano at the age of six at the Piano Forte music school. As he grew up, he sang in countless children’s and youth choirs. Shortly after enrolling at the Academy in 2011, Žiga founded the Crescendo Symphony Orchestra, which gives two themed concerts per year.
In 2015, he then founded the Crescendo Mixed Choir, which he chose to perform at his master’s concert at the Academy in 2016; the choir focuses primarily on performing challenging choral compositions. Žiga regularly attends conducting seminars (Georg Grün, Tomaž Faganel, Gary Graden, Stojan Kuret, etc.), choral competitions (Slovakia – Bratislava, Czech Republic – Prague, Latvia – Grand Prix competition, Greece – Preveza, Slovenia) and festivals/symposia (France – Choralies, Spain – World Symposium on Choral Music 2017, USA – ACDA). He also took part twice in an orchestral conducting workshop with the world-renowned composer Brady Allred, PhD, in Salt Lake City, UT, USA. Žiga currently teaches music at Predoslje Primary School in Kranj, where he also conducts two children’s choirs and a youth choir. In addition, he conducts the mixed youth choir of Škofja Loka Grammar School (Gimnazija Škofja Loka), the Crescendo Mixed Choir, the Crescendo Symphony Orchestra, the Upanje church choir in Stražišče, Kranj, and the Rož women’s choir in St. Jakob in Rosental, Austria.
Crescendo Mixed Choir
Choir presentation
The Crescendo Mixed Choir, part of the Crescendo Musical Society, was founded in early 2015. It was established at the initiative of its current conductor, Žiga Ke, and now has more than 40 young singers who share the common goal of performing high-quality choral music.
Their repertoire consists of choral music by Slovenian and international composers, as well as popular music arranged for choirs. They focus primarily on a high-level choral programme, which they perform at choral competitions and festivals in Slovenia and abroad.
One of their most important projects was performing at a special concert for their choir conductor, Žiga Kert, in May 2016. The choir presented a very dynamic repertoire, featuring Slovenian pieces as well as international choral music, ranging from Slovenian folk songs and African-American spirituals to contemporary choral music by various American and European composers.
The Crescendo Choir has set itself the goal of performing challenging choral repertoire and taking part in various choral events both in Slovenia and abroad. The first major independent musical project of the Crescendo Musical Society was the concert at Škofja Loka Castle in June 2017.
THE CHOIR DIRECTOR: Žiga Kert
Žiga Kert studied music education at the Academy of Music in Ljubljana, where he completed his studies under Prof. Marko Vatovec. He studied orchestral conducting at the State Conservatory of Carinthia in Klagenfurt, Austria, under Prof. Aleksej Kornienko, and later under the mentorship of Prof. Martin A. Fuchsberger. He also studied classical singing under mag. prof. Francka Senk. Žiga began playing the piano at the age of six at the Piano Forte music school. As he grew up, he sang in countless children’s and youth choirs. Shortly after enrolling at the Academy in 2011, Žiga founded the Crescendo Symphony Orchestra, which gives two themed concerts per year.
In 2015, he then founded the Crescendo Mixed Choir, which he chose to perform at his master’s concert at the Academy in 2016; the choir focuses primarily on performing challenging choral compositions. Žiga regularly attends conducting seminars (Georg Grün, Tomaž Faganel, Gary Graden, Stojan Kuret, etc.), choral competitions (Slovakia – Bratislava, Czech Republic – Prague, Latvia – Grand Prix competition, Greece – Preveza, Slovenia) and festivals/symposia (France – Choralies, Spain – World Symposium on Choral Music 2017, USA – ACDA). He also took part twice in an orchestral conducting workshop with the world-renowned composer Brady Allred, PhD, in Salt Lake City, UT, USA. Žiga currently teaches music at Predoslje Primary School in Kranj, where he also conducts two children’s choirs and a youth choir. In addition, he conducts the mixed youth choir of Škofja Loka Grammar School (Gimnazija Škofja Loka), the Crescendo Mixed Choir, the Crescendo Symphony Orchestra, the Upanje church choir in Stražišče, Kranj, and the Rož women’s choir in St. Jakob in Rosental, Austria.